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Your cat is pretty amazing, we know. There are some things that make your cat even more amazing, though - and you may not be aware of them.

Your cat’s body and mind have taken 4,000 years to develop from the wild animal they began as to the admittedly still wild but more domesticated kitty you know today. Along the way, he’s picked up some neat tricks, like...

Cats can drink seawater

Drinking seawater is generally bad idea for mammals. Ingesting saltwater leaves you more dehydrated than when you started, and can even kill you in large quantities.

Still, a small number of mammals can safely drink small amounts of saltwater, and your cat is one of them. If they absolutely have to, cats can re-hydrate by drinking saltwater (in moderation, of course), since their kidneys are able to process the salt.

Cats actually don’t need much water to be healthy and hydrated, and get most of their water from their food (as any cat owner knows, they get the rest from your bathtub instead of their water dish..).

Milk is actually bad for most cats

Bunnies are to carrots as cats are to milk, right? Not so! These ideas most likely stem from popular children’s cartoons (Bugs Bunny is never without his crunch carrot treat) and are pretty far off the mark.

Just as carrots are bad for rabbits - they’re high in sugar and can lead to physical, dental, and even mental health issues - milk is not too great for your cat. Many cats are allergic to cow’s milk, and get upset stomach and other potential digestive problems from it. Of course, some cats can drink milk just fine - but it’s not a necessity since they get all their nutrients from their food.

Adult cats only meow at humans

Think about this for a moment - have you ever heard a cat meow at another cat? Sure, kittens meow and mew all the time. But once a cat reaches adulthood that behavior stops.

Or at least it stops with other cats. Cats have us all figured out, though, and have learned that meowing at us pathetically can get us to do what they want. Cat meows are a form of mimicry: when they meow, cats are pretending to be human babies. And here we thought we were the ones in control of the situation...

Cats are clever mimics

Baby cries are not the only sounds that cats have mastered over the years. Many experts believe that a cat’s hiss is imitation of a snake ready to strike. The sound is universally translated as “danger, stay away from me!”

This behavior is not limited to domesticated cats, of course - some cats in the wild have become amazingly adept at manipulating other species. Some wild cats like pumas and jaguars have learned to imitate the “all clear” signals of monkeys and other animals to lure them out into the open.

It’s official, cats have everyone wrapped around their paws. Just give in and admit that you’re the pet here!